PROGRESS: South Sioux City hotel now flying Marriott flag

The 181-room hotel officially became a Marriott last November, the flagship brand of Marriott International, after a year of renovations to the property on South Sioux City's riverfront.

Gleeson has always taken a great personal interest in the hotel, which is now flying its third flag in four years.

"I've always described this as my hobby," said Gleeson, president and CEO of Sioux City-based Klinger Companies, a family of contracting firms.

In 2017, the former Marina Inn was converted to a Marriott property, with its name changed to a Delta by Marriott. 

The Marriott chain operates 19 brands, including luxury, upscale, extended stay, and limited service brands.

The South Sioux City hotel became the first Marriott in the metro area. A lot of money went into converting the property to the luxury brand. Gleeson won't say exactly how much but acknowledged it was several million dollars.

Guest rooms and suites, ballrooms and meeting rooms and the hotel's restaurant, Kahill's Chophouse, all underwent extensive renovations. A Starbucks was added near the front desk.

The project contractor, as one might expect, was Klinger -- Gleeson joked his company was the "low bidder."

The hotel interior is about as chic and stylish as they come; everything from the carpet to the light fixtures to the furniture and the decor are bright, new and fashionable. A large amount of retired, but still usable, furniture from the hotel was given to charities during the remodel. 

Between the conversion to a Delta by Marriott and the later conversion to a Marriott, there isn't a single element of the old Marina Inn that remains. Most everything at the hotel has been upgraded -- the guest internet is more powerful, the bedsheets boast higher thread counts and even the complimentary soaps and shampoos are higher-grade. 

"There is probably, literally, from one end of the property to the other, not an area that hasn't been totally renovated in the past three years," Gleeson said. 

Certain, elite guests -- those who stay at Marriott frequently -- get access to the new, exclusive M-Club, which offers breakfasts during the week, snacks throughout the day, lounge space and other amenities. 

Gleeson's father, Robert, acquired the hotel in August 1972 after the original owners went bankrupt a few years after it opened. 

"It was initially built in 1969, and we were the contractor on the project," Gleeson said. "It was initially developed by South Sioux City business people. They went into bankruptcy and they never paid us. So then my father bought it on the county courthouse steps." 

he family leased the hotel, which also operated as a Best Western for a period, to third parties until 1985, when they re-took control of operations. 

"Since 1985, I've personally expanded it, renovated it constantly," Gleeson said. "Just completed the latest renovations in the past month." 

Three years ago, Gleeson's request to join the luxury Marriott hotel chain was approved; the Marina Inn subsequently became a Delta by Marriott hotel.

This move was, in part, in response to challenging market conditions for independently owned hotels.

"Being an independent property, in a market like Sioux City or anywhere probably nationally, is increasingly tough, because the power of the internet, with the websites of Marriott or Hilton, the two most powerful ones -- they are driving your hotel guests," he said. 

Not long thereafter -- in 2018 -- Gleeson and the team asked Marriott if the hotel could become a Marriott franchisee. 

It apparently wasn't a hard decision for the Marriott officials. 

"They said, 'Let us get back to you tomorrow.' And they called back and said, 'Given your track record, and our confidence in how you perform, both management wise and property structure... definitely," Gleeson said.

General manager Ralph Bobian, who's been at the hotel eight years, said Marriott looks at a variety of metrics to determine whether a property is worthy of an upgrade. The South Sioux location hit all of Marriott's measurements -- the South Sioux Delta frequently was among the top Delta locations. Gleeson credits Bobian for the hotel's successes. 

The 180 full- and part-time employees had to go through extensive training with each transition the hotel made, to accommodate the high level of hospitality expected of the hotel. 

Gleeson's ownership of the hotel makes him something of a unicorn. It's common for hotel owners to live far away from their hotels, somewhat in the mold of the absentee landlord. Their management teams make all the operational decisions. 

But Gleeson isn't like that. While his management team does quite a lot and makes many decisions, he's there quite a bit himself. 

"I'm the only resident of Sioux City that owns a hotel in this marketplace," he said. 

"I've always said we're very fortunate in the sense that we have an owner that is so passionate about the hotel," Bobian added. "I've said it many times, John's thumbprint is on every piece of art in this hotel and on the furniture selections."